This afternoon.
Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2
A People Before Profit cross party event to support Luas drivers in their ongoing dispute with the tram’s operators, Transdev.
Talks between management and Siptu were to resume today after drivers cancelled the 48-hour stoppage scgeduled for this weekend.
Supporters this afternoon included TDs Richard Boyd Barrett, Dessie Ellis, Paul Murphy, Joan Collins and Brid Smith.
Fight!
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There won’t be a fight here lads, the general consensus among the people who comment here is that the Luas drivers are scroungy money hungry entitled no-skill ass-clowns.
Only the odd contrarian will disagree!
I don’t think that.
I believe you will find a qualifying statement at the end of my post. Also “general consensus” does not equate to 100% agree.
I don’t consider myself to be a contrarian.
I don’t think your grasp of the English language far exceeds tenuous.
Come on, someone jump in with the Stop / Go lever put downs.
They should be happy they had an easy, secure job for last few years while others were laid off or had their pay cut. These jokers trotted off with great pay and a guaranteed bonus every year. Incredible job security for a working class job that requires no education
don’t for get press the ding, ding, ding button!
Pay me more each year for doing the exact same low skilled job that requires little training and no development to do. That’s the union way. Zero tolerance or sympathy for these people. In fact id like to see them all on the dole and go with out the luas for 7 weeks while new drivers are trained up.
Unions are working on the assumption that their members are like gold fish and need constant training to do the same job day after day, therefore requiring more pay.. or that doing the same job day after day is so monotonous that they deserve more pay. A bit like train driver, “i’ve to drive longer trains.. give me more money” or “i’ve to drive shorter trains, but there will be more of us to do it every 10 mins… give me more money”.
” In fact id like to see them all on the dole”
You sound like a really nice person.
I would have thought that driving a vehicle that at any time night be carrying 150-200 people was a pretty important job.
I pay for travel in my general taxes.
I pay for beer in my general taxes…oh, if only….
The unions picked the wrong battle here….
The fella in the red tracksuit seriously needs to sort out his barnet.
I wonder in what circumstances they wouldn’t support strikers.
Maybe if it was central bank staff?
Or maybe Jobsbridge workers.
Wow, pretty negative there.
The 1916 weekend strike could have been called off for the events that were in it.
But the main crux of the strike now is pay rates for new hires, that they wouldn’t be cut.
The issue of low pay and reducing entry levels of pay is a serious one.
Its affecting groups such as nurses, gardai, teachers, civil servants, Luas workers and now Tesco workers.
Young adults are facing lower lifetime earnings as a result.
Didn’t most of those groups agree to those conditions in order to secure their own positions?
Yes, and pulled the ladder up for young people / new hires.
By not agreeing to Transdev’s proposal to drop their pay? Did Gerry Madden offer to lower his pay to make up the money they needed?
In the case of the public sector groups that you mentioned, this was negotiated by the unions on the behalf of their then current membership.
I will do that job for 25,000 a year. Where do I apply?
Just bring your CV to the protest and hand it in.
25,000 seriously?
all media are demonsing the luas drivers (on behalf of the government) to put the rest of us off goin on strike. dont buy into it. truth is, they were promised pay rises from when they started years ago, and received none. its their right to take action.
I’m not listening to a word you say until you start using capital letters in the appropriate places.
All those TDs, have they no Dáil to go to?
Why was Karl Lagerfeld there?
LOL Sharon. I am in tears laughing here….
Hehe!
The only advantage i can see from these protests is i can now ask my boss for a raise for my high skilled job or i will go make more money as a las driver.
As a matter of interest, why don’t you?
Well now, there goes any future votes for Dessie in ballymun
Brid Smith looks like Roger Taylor from Queen there….
can I have a X percent payrise?
Can you increase productivity
No
Then No.
This does common sense does not apply with the Luas drivers. Plenty out there who would do this job!
Boyd barret would be protesting and saying no if god himself promised sun for 3 months
Can I have X% pay rise?
What did you do in the past year to bring your level of expertise and training to a higher level, enabling you to do your job better, and maybe offer new skills to your employer? None? Then no, you can’t have any more money than last year.
think this through:
1. Luas drivers pay goes up
2. Luas costs go up
3. Luas fares inevitably go up, whether in the short term or at the next contract tender
4. Luas commuters, who are a broad mix of society, pay for this
5. A de facto regressive income transfer from the general commuting public to a tiny group of protected workers takes place
Oh yeah, this is what socialism is all about right? Its bizarre to have the likes of SF/AAA-PBP support this.
They say they are fighting for the vulnerable and underpaid………… who are on 42k?
It’s not even about the money so much. Free gp care for them and their family. Contributory pension to go up from 7.5% to 14! More days off. Increase to yearly bonus.
You have no clue, I was the first to begrudge these workers then unlike most idiots on here I actually read the real demands and why they asked and stroked for them. Use your brain not your mouth
hahaha stroked* it’s funnier so I’m leaving it.
So you not only disliked them before it was cool you then also liked them again before it was cool?
Wow……. and where do you get your hipster beard groomed may I ask?
Brid smith front and centre no surprise, probably spouting her marxist dogmatic garbage in her head over an over again “workers united ….. something something”
Hilarious seeing coppinger poking her head out from the back with an “im here too, is there anything to nationlise?” look
RBB with the usual gormless “im helping and people might like me” confusion on his face.
And of course murphy with with his standard righteous indignation scowl “im right and everyone else is wrong…… wait whos this lad chatting away instead of me….. is it not my turn yet?”
+1
I count 19 members of the prolitariat at this mass protest. Have I any advance on 19…..?
AAA reporting it was attended by 500,000
Biased mass media reported a lot less. Expect a Mercille article soon
An Irish Rail union rep was on The Last Word the other day acting like a belligerent gowl spoiling for a fight. He was ridiculous to listen to. This is going to get a lost worse before it gets better.
I think a party called “Profit before people” would get more votes than these morons. No Profits No People. Simple as